UGA Volunteer Organizations
wiki hero picture.jpg|Courtesy of UGA HEROs|linktext=Courtesy of UGA HEROs wiki pic 2.jpg|Courtesy of UGA Miracle|linktext=Courtesy of UGA Miracle Introduction Freshman at the University of Georgia are always overwhelmed when they first arrive at the school. A big campus, hard classes, social life, greek life and many other factors can lead to enormous amounts of stress for incoming freshman. One way to relieve all of this stress is to get involved. The University of Georgia offers many clubs and organizations for students to get involved in. It is very important to get involved in something here at UGA. Joining a club is a great way to meet new people and develop friendships. Members of clubs learn leadership skills, ways to get involved for a lifetime and how to interact with other people. Also, joining a non-profit organization always looks commendable on a job resume after college. A few big organizations to get involved in would be: UGA HEROs, UGA Miracle and UGA Relay for life. Joining any of these three would be a great way for freshman to get involved early in their career and stay involved throughout all four years of college. All three of these organizations support great causes and do a tremendous amount of work in order to help the community. Don't worry, you're allowed to join all three! UGA HEROs From all of the shirts saying “UGA HERO”, it seems that UGA HEROs is one of the most significant clubs here at UGA. UGA HEROs is an organization that consists of students here at UGA whose goal is to raise money to support children who are diagnosed with HIV/AIDS. UGA HEROs has “provided 500 kids with over 18,000 hours of quality life care, and raised over 1.5 million dollars.”(UGA HEROs). UGA HEROs offers many programs for the kids whom they help. The programs incorporate the HERO members in order to create relationships and make valuable friends. According to the HERO website, some of the HERO “programs range from Life Skills to Summer Camp”(UGA HEROs). UGA HEROs hosts the “Hero Olympics” once a year in which “Hero kids can experience a day worry free from their disease”(UGA HEROs). Out of a survey that was conducted of thirty three random freshman, nine said that they were involved with UGA HEROs. From that sample, it seems that twenty seven percent of the freshman class are members of UGA HEROs. Members of UGA HEROs have said that the kids really do look up to them as “heroes.” If you are interested in joining UGA HEROs you can visit their website at www.ugaheros.org. UGA Miracle Uga Miracle is another club that anyone can join. While UGA HEROs is focussed on raising money for children with HIV/AIDS, UGA Miracle aims their attention toward raising money for the Children's Health Care of Atlanta. The Children's Healthcare of Atlanta “provided $103 million in unreimbursed care to patients”(UGA Miracle). UGA Miracle gives one hundred percent of the money raised to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta. The money that UGA Miracle raises is “for the Rehabilitation and Orthopedics departments at Children’s”(UGA Miracle). Children who have had lifelong illnesses go to that specific department in order to relearn the basic processes of every day life: walking, talking and interacting with others. Members of UGA Miracle are extremely involved when it comes to fundraising; they do “letter writing campaigns, canning, online fundraising, and other efforts to raise $200”(UGA Miracle). According to the UGA Miracle website, the organization has raised “$28,609” and their end of the year goal is “$304,020” (UGA Miracle). UGA Miracle also connects with their members on a personal level stating “we understand that it can be hard to find your niche... that's why we seek to help students find their place on campus” (UGA Miracle). UGA Miracle encourages their members to make new friends by “coming to events and having the time of your life, and making memories and creating traditions”(UGA Miracle). Out of the same random sample of thirty three students that were surveyed, seven stated that they were involved with UGA Miracle. The numbers from the survey say that about twenty-one percent of the freshman class seem to be associated with UGA Miracle. Miracle members have a love for children, and that is why they join. Miracle members know, and stress to everyone, how important Children's Healthcare of Atlanta is, and that is why they have so much passion for UGA Miracle. To get involved in UGA Miracle you can visit their website at www.ugamiracle.org. UGA Relay For Life Relay for Life is a huge event that anyone can attend with one goal, to “raise money for cancer research and cancer patients, to spread cancer awareness, celebrate the lives of survivors, remember those who lost their lives to cancer, and unite a community in the fight against cancer!”(UGA Relay for Life). Each relay event is an all night event that consists of many teams from around the state. Each team must have at least one member walking around the track throughout the whole night, essentially creating a “relay.” UGA has created its own Relay team to raise money and go to the Relay for Life events representing the University of Georgia. According to the UGA Relay Facebook page, Relay is the “largest student-run philanthropy at the University of Georgia”(Relay for Life). This year there are “1130 participants. 132 teams. and $29,837 raised”(UGA Relay for Life). The Relay for Life team here at UGA has accomplished an amazing feat when it comes to total amount of money raised; “since 1999, UGA Relay has raised more than $2.76 million for the American Cancer Society”(UGA Relay for Life). Many people are helped with the amount of money raised by the UGA Relay team. Jenna Barnett, who is very involved and attends all relay events, was asked why people should join relay and she replied, “because it not only gives people an easy way to get involved on campus, but it also gives college kids the opportunity to find a passion for something. I don't think there is anyone who doesn't know someone who is affected by cancer and that's why I relay”(Jenna Barnett). This shows that the people who are involved in UGA Relay really do care about making a difference. If you are interested in joining UGA Relay for life, you can visit their website at http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLFY11SA?fr_id=41257&pg=entry. Works Cited 'UGA HEROs – Improving the Quality of Life for Children Affected by HIV/AIDS''. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. .'' ''HERO For Children. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. <'''http://www.heroforchildren.org/>'' '' '' 'UGA Miracle -- Our Team. Their Dream - Home''. Web. 30 Oct. 2011. <'''http://www.ugamiracle.org/>.'' '' '' '' '' "UGA Relay For Life - Youth Organization, College - Athens, GA - Info | Facebook." Web. 30 Oct. 2011. . '' '' "The American Cancer Society - 2012 Relay For Life of University of Georgia." ''Relay For Life. Web. 31 Oct. 2011. .'' '' '' ''Barnett, Jenna. Personal Interview. 1 November 2011. '' '' '' ''Kinard, Alec. “Are you a member of UGA Relay, UGA Miracle or UGA HEROs?” Survey. 2 November. 2011 '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' '' Category:Athens Community